Bayer sends warning to doctors over Avelox

German pharma company Bayer has sent letters to doctors in Europe warning of rare incidents of severe liver and skin side effects in patients taking its antibiotic Avelox, following a routine analysis of recent data on side effects.

German pharma company Bayer has sent letters to doctors in Europe warning of rare incidents of severe liver and skin side effects in patients taking its antibiotic Avelox, following a routine analysis of recent data on side effects.

Bayer first added warnings to the Avelox label in ? 2007 but is now reinforcing it with letters.

Avelox is a prescription antibiotic that is used to treat respiratory and other infections.

"The side effects are very rare. But when it happens, it is quite severe to patients. We want doctors to be more aware," said Yvonne Moeller, a spokeswoman at Bayer told Reuters.

Avelox, one of Bayer's best-selling drugs, saw sales of almost Ä400m ($584.4 million) in 2006. In 2007, Avelox sales increased to Ä99m in Q3 2007 from Ä79m in Q3 2006.